LA HABRA – Westlake High School, which received the No. 13 seed in the CIF-Southern Section Division 3AAA girls basketball bracket, was as good as advertised Thursday night.

That didn’t bode well for La Habra, which was looking to add to one of its better seasons in recent memory.

Sarah Raymond and Samantha Wilson scored 17 points each and the visiting Warriors proved to be too much for the Highlanders in a 57-44 victory in a first-round game.

Westlake, also getting nine points from Kenna Fallan, improved to 15-11 and advanced to face either No. 4 Rio Mesa or Santa Barbara in the second round on Saturday. La Habra, getting 19 points from Allyson O’Brien and nine and eight points, respectively, from Chloe Lockhart and Kayla Judkins, finished 18-8.

“They deserved to win,” La Habra coach Jim Bohn said. “They played hard today. They beat us to the punch in all areas. That’s what you’re expected to do during the playoffs. The better team won tonight.”

A key for the Warriors came on the defensive end where Westlake limited La Habra to 13-of-48 shooting while also forcing 17 turnovers, 13 in the first half. Those numbers helped the Warriors enjoy a 26-19 lead at the break.

Jada Webster and Wilson had back-to-back baskets to build an 11-4 lead near the end of the first quarter before Jaclyn Detwiler and Wilson scored on inside shots to key a 6-3 surge for a 17-9 advantage with just over four minutes left in the second quarter.

Westlake then scored the first nine points of the third quarter to all but secure it.

Raymond opened the half with a 3-pointer at 7:24 before Wilson followed with a 3-pointer at 5:46 and Detwiler with a fast-break layup to push the advantage to 35-19 with 5:17 remaining in the quarter.

But La Habra died hard. The Highlanders, getting 3-pointers from Judkins and Lockhart, countered with a 9-1 run to begin the fourth quarter and cut the deficit to 40-33 with 5:19 left.

“That’s the one thing about this team,” Bohn said. “They are not going to give up. We’ve had some close games with Sonora and others in (the Freeway League), so they are not going to give up. They are going to play to the end.

“Allyson tried to do her best, but unfortunately defensively, we didn’t bring it.”

O’Brien missed a chance to cut it to six points after making only two of three free throws and Westlake strengthened its lead when Wilson hit a 3-pointer from the corner to make it a 10-point game, 45-35, with 3:11 to play.

The Warriors then made five of six free throws down the stretch to win it.

“I think overall, I’m pleased with this season,” Bohn said. “Looking back two years ago when we were 3-23 before I got here and 13-13 last year and 18-8 this year, we’re on the right track.

“We didn’t have one of our main players, Amy Wilbourn, tonight, and that’s a huge hit for our team. But overall, I couldn’t have asked for more this year.

“This is the first time we’ve hosted a playoff game at La Habra in about 10 years. It just was unfortunate that our game wasn’t there tonight.”

Steve Ramirez writes about public safety issues including criminal justice and fires in Inland Southern California. He previously covered high schools, college football and motor sports for the San Gabriel Valley Tribune since 1989. He's a big fan of Buddy Holly and loves World War II movies.

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